NFL Sues M.I.A. For $16.6M For Super Bowl Middle Finger [VIDEO]

The sports struggle M.I.A. has gotten herself into will likely take its toil on her bank account and sanity as the NFL is suing the “Paper Planes” singer for $16.6M–up from $1.5M for her middle finger caught on camera at the 2012 Super Bowl halftime show.

Lawyers for the league came up with the extra $15M tariff after they calculated what advertisers would have paid for Super Bowl commercials during the two minutes M.I.A. was on stage giving America the highest of lowdown insults.

M.I.A. wasn’t paid for the event as is the custom of the league. But nevertheless, the NFL spent the first two years of arbitration demanding $1.5 million for allegedly breaching her performance contract and tarnishing its goodwill and reputation.

Now the NFL has added an additional claim, seeking $15.1 million more in “restitution” as the alleged value of public exposure she received by appearing for an approximately two minute segment during Madonna’s performance. The figure is based on what advertisers would have paid for ads during this time. “The claim for restitution lacks any basis in law, fact, or logic,” say M.I.A.’s response papers, filed on Friday.

The music superstar tells the arbitrator that the “continued pursuit of this proceeding is transparently an exercise by the NFL intended solely to bully and make an example of Respondents for daring to challenge NFL.”

The latest arbitration papers for M.I.A. go into the “profane, bawdy, lascivious, demeaning and/or unacceptable behavior by its players, team owners, coaching and management personnel and by performers chosen and endorsed by NFL to perform in its halftime shows.”